Specials (studio album)
by The Specials

Specials by The Specials
Year: 1979
Overall rank: 920th   
Average Rating: 
78/100 (from 466 votes)
     
Accolades:
Award Top 20 albums of 1979 (17th)
Award Top albums of the 1970s (194th)
Award Top 1,000 albums of all time (920th)

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Product Details
Availability

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The SPECIALS Original Unusual Lapel Pin Badge Ska 2 Tone
Condition: Good


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The Specials - Specials CD [New CD]
Condition: Brand New


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The Specials - More Specials: 40th Anniversary [Half-Speed Master Edition] Vinyl
Condition: New


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The Specials bestography

Specials is ranked as the best album by The Specials.

The Specials album bestography « Higher ranked
-
This album (920th)
Specials
Lower ranked (3,586th) »
More Specials

(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

Upcoming concerts

Feb
22
Sun
19:00
Maggie Lindemann
House of Blues Houston, Houston, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Dec
31
Wed
21:00
Next of Kin w/ Nané ft Quentin Arispe & KindKeith
Antone's Nightclub, Austin, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Jan
16
Fri
21:00
Mike Dawes
Stage Red, Fontana, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Discover more upcoming concerts

Listen to Specials on YouTube

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Specials track list

   The tracks on this album have an average rating of 79 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

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Track
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1.
Track pick (860 - 109 votes)
Average Rating: 86 (109 votes)Comments: View 0
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2.
Average Rating: 79 (70 votes)Comments: View 0
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3.
Average Rating: 78 (64 votes)Comments: View 0
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4.
Average Rating: 80 (71 votes)Comments: View 0
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5.
Average Rating: 80 (68 votes)Comments: View 0
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6.
Average Rating: 80 (70 votes)Comments: View 0
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7.
Average Rating: 76 (62 votes)Comments: View 0
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8.
Average Rating: 80 (70 votes)Comments: View 0
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9.
Average Rating: 79 (66 votes)Comments: View 0
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10.
Average Rating: 76 (63 votes)Comments: View 0
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11.
Average Rating: 76 (61 votes)Comments: View 0
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12.
Average Rating: 84 (97 votes)Comments: View 1
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13.
Average Rating: 78 (65 votes)Comments: View 0
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Average Rating: 79 (65 votes)Comments: View 0
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Track pick (1000 - 100 votes) Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.

Specials rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 920th | 1970s rank: 194th | 1979 rank: 17th

Specials collection

Specials ratings

Average Rating: 
78/100 (from 466 votes)
   Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 466 ratings for this album.

Sort by
RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
70/100
 !
12/08/2025 16:37 Exist-en-ciel   4,25070/100
 
65/100
 !
11/13/2025 00:03 NYAndreas   1,43243/100
 
90/100
 !
10/04/2025 13:04 cronadigallina   2,91067/100
 
75/100
 !
09/19/2025 10:44 markl73   51179/100
 
45/100
 !
07/13/2025 13:57 Dingerbell   3,99063/100

Rating metrics: Help Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 3% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 77.7/100, a mean average of 76.7/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 77.8/100. The standard deviation for this album is 15.0.

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Specials comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 20 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  
60/100
From 08/23/2022 22:16 | #288872
This is quite a monotonous and repetitive listen that felt rather slow for me. The instrumentals seem very similar from track to track and none of them really hook me into the record. It does blend some interesting styles together and this fusion is maintained pretty well throughout but it just gets boring after a while. If you picked out individual tracks and gave them an isolated listen they would sound superior but with them in an album context it just doesn't work and I find myself getting drawn out of the album quite a lot. Also, I find the instrumentation to be a bit simplistic and I feel like the record could do with some more experimentation and flare. Overall, this album really lacks a punch for me and after the many listens I have given it, I still haven't grasped the record or understood the hype surrounding it.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
65/100
From 06/15/2022 21:31 | #286417
I like more punk tunes and this is definitely original, but I can't stand big part of this record.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
75/100
From 01/13/2022 08:19 | #279234
Ska is pretty boring music if listened to this many songs in a row. Put the best tracks on a mixed playlist,. then it will be okay. Fun music and well-executed and produced,
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
70/100
From 11/04/2021 18:14 | #275848
fun ska. gangsters epic
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 07/23/2019 18:32 | #240262
Favorite Tracks:Nite Klub, Blank Expression, Little Bitch
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 12/17/2018 21:32 | #227354
Very consistent, high energy album and a great introduction album for anyone wanting to get into 2-tone which mixes Punk with Ska.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 08/27/2018 21:21 | #220168
Fun, energetic and great production provided by Elvis Costello. If there is one ska album you should have in your collection it's this one!
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
55/100
From 03/19/2018 20:34 | #211294
There are a few really good tracks on this album but most are just good. I like ska but when they split and formed fun boy 3, i thought the music went to a higher level.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
75/100
From 01/13/2018 16:25 | #205393
Pretty much what a ska album produced by Elvis Costello would sound like.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 07/30/2017 20:37 | #195200
This is ranked outside the top 500 albums! Incomprehensible!! This is a real classic- so much energy, humour and personality. This album is a joy. So many classics including their peerless cover of "a message to you Rudy". The pace never lets up and the tracks simply burst out of the speakers. Highly recommended.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (4 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
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Best Albums of 1979
1. London Calling by The Clash
2. The Wall by Pink Floyd
3. Unknown Pleasures by Joy Division
4. Fear Of Music by Talking Heads
5. Off The Wall by Michael Jackson
6. Breakfast In America by Supertramp
7. Entertainment! by Gang Of Four
8. Rust Never Sleeps by Neil Young & Crazy Horse
9. Highway To Hell by AC/DC
10. Reggatta De Blanc by The Police
11. Tusk by Fleetwood Mac
12. Damn The Torpedoes by Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers
13. Ambient 1: Music For Airports by Brian Eno
14. Metal Box by Public Image Ltd.
15. The B-52's by The B-52's
16. Armed Forces by Elvis Costello And The Attractions
17. Specials by The Specials
18. 154 by Wire
19. Singles Going Steady by Buzzcocks
20. Setting Sons by The Jam
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